Union’s trimester system can often feel overwhelming, with jam-packed schedules and an overload of information for ten straight weeks—three times a year. However, it certainly delivers when it comes to long breaks, especially the six-week winter vacation.
Students get to celebrate Thanksgiving with their families without having to return for exams, unlike at many other colleges. The holiday season only gets better with the onset of Christmas and New Year’s.
While some students choose to rest after an exhausting fall term, others choose to travel with family and friends. For those interested, Union offers various programs over break that students can take advantage of to enhance their undergraduate experience in meaningful ways.
Savannah Cote ’27 spent three weeks in Patagonia, Argentina, doing conservation work through the Klemm Fellow International Internship Program. She worked with a local indigenous wildlife ranger, Alan,and chose the location as it allowed her to feel close to nature without feeling like a tourist.
( Savannah Cote ‘27)
“Over the years La Esperanza has faced some difficulties such as hunting and wild fires but thanks to its resiliency and with the help of wildlife rangers like Alan, it is being restored,” shared Cote. “This is seen in every new group of guanaco, every single puma that we see on a camera trap, and every plant that blooms in the dry desert. You can feel it in your heart.”
Cote emerged from this experience with an overwhelming sense of compassion and gratitude, both for the land, and for this incredible experience.
Similarly, I had the opportunity to travel to Peru as part of a post-class trip for my Geomorphology class. A group of 14 students, led by Professor Donald Rodbell and other faculty of the Geosciences department, were fortunate enough to travel to the city of Huaraz to conduct field research on the local glacial geomorphology.
Over the course of five days, we hiked to sites like the Pastoruri glacier, Conococha and Pitec moraines, and Yungay, to witness how glaciers from thousands of years ago shaped Peru’s modern landscape. We also collected data for our final projects that we presented on the sixth and last day of the trip.
I felt incredibly grateful to experience what field research as a geologist entails, and I highly recommend that Union students take advantage of the geoscience classes at Union, which are often accompanied by post-class trips.
Beyond such trips, Union also offers a wide variety of three-week mini-terms over break that span different fields and are open to all students. This winter, students traveled to New Zealand to study renewable energy, Germany, South Africa, and Spain for history-focused programs, and London for theater.
“New Zealand enhanced my winter break to the highest degree,” expressed Aaron Binion ’27. “The amazing geological features, exciting food, unfamiliar animals, amazing indigenous culture and people truly made it the most memorable break.” Binion was thankful to be able to experience this term with his close friends.
For students interested in economics, the college also offers an annual financial bootcamp over the winter break, which allows selected students to spend two weeks in New York city, interacting with established professionals in the field.
Shravani Kulkarni ’28 shared, “over the course of the bootcamp, we learned financial concepts through case studies and did site visits to major financial institutions. The part I enjoyed the most was the site visits because we got to learn from alumni working in the field.”
(Shravani Kulkarni ‘28)
In addition to these programs, a small number of students, primarily international students and student athletes, stayed on campus over break. Though the campus was almost entirely deserted, these students made the best of their experience at Union.
“Spending winter break here was quiet, yet a unique experience,” said Zaid Fafouri ’26. “Being among the first to see snow on campus was exciting, and following our sports teams during games made the campus feel alive. It was a great opportunity to connect more closely with our amazing staff.”
As students returned to campus refreshed and inspired, winter break proved to be more than just time off. For a lot of students, it was the experience of their lifetime, shaped by Union’s incredible offerings over break.
